With the farm-to-fork movement in full flow across the United States, we’re starting to appreciate the importance of homegrown produce. There’s certainly no shortage of space—around 45% of the US is farmland, around 900 million acres, where all kinds of different ingredients are grown.
Here’s a rundown of the most widely grown vegetables, fruits, and other crops that grow annually in the United States.
1. Corn
The largest crop grown in the United States is corn in terms of total production. An area known as the Corn Belt covers close to 90 million acres across the Midwest.
2. Soy beans
The US produces a massive amount of soy, much of it used for animal feed, but a significant amount is also used for vegetable oils.
3. Avocados
Way before they were the go-to brunch option in the US, avocados were cultivated throughout Central America. California is now the largest producer of avocados in the country.
Get the recipe here: Zucchini and Avocado soup
4. Beans
Along with corn and squash, Native Americans have been planting beans for thousands of years, dubbing them ‘the three sisters’ and making them integral to their culinary heritage.
Get the recipe here: Borlotti bean soup
5. Barley
Barley is a big business in the US. It is grown across Idaho, North Dakota, Montana, Colorado, Wyoming, and Washington. Barley is used for malting, which is used to make beer and whiskey.
6. Wheat
The US produces 1.65 billion bushels of wheat across 37.2 million acres, which is converted to flour to make everything from bread to biscuits, cakes, and pastries.
7. Beef
The United States is the world’s largest beef producer, the majority of it high-quality, grain-fed beef. It’s no wonder US barbecues are the best in the world!
Get the recipe here: Smoked Beef Short Ribs
8. Dairy
California, Wisconsin, Idaho, Texas, and New York produce half of the country's milk, and the US reportedly has 1.5 billion pounds of cheese in cold storage!
9. Potatoes
The United States is the world’s fifth-biggest producer of potatoes, with ‘spuds’ grown in almost every region. Fry them, mash them, roast them… whichever way you cook them, they’re delicious!
Try this extra special Confit potatoes recipe!
Would you like to save this?
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
10. Grapes
California alone produces more than 5,600,000 tons of grapes a year—over 90% of the total across the US—the majority of which is used for wine making. Vine times indeed.
11. Strawberries
The US produces about 15% of the world’s strawberries, with an annual production of around 1.39 million tons. California farms account for more than 80% of US strawberries, which means 12% of strawberries on Earth are grown in the Golden State!
Get the recipe here: Strawberry cheesecake
12. Rice
The US produces about 20 billion pounds of rice a year, most of it in Arkansas, where over 5,000 rice farmers are employed.
13. Apples
The first apple trees in North America grew from seeds brought by French Jesuits, who first planted apple trees in the US in the late sixteenth century. The United States is now the world’s third-biggest producer of apples, with over 4 million tons of apples grown every year, including more than 100 varieties.
14. Pistachios
With about 75% of the market share, the US is the world’s biggest producer of pistachios, one of the world’s most luxurious types of nuts.
15. Squash
The classic winter veggie isn’t as widely grown in the States as it used to be. Still, states like Florida and California have a big squash industry, and the US is the eighth biggest producer in the world.
16. Peanuts
The US produces about 3 million tons of peanuts a year, and while the humble little nut (which isn’t actually a nut) makes a great snack, the vast majority are turned into peanut butter.
17. Oranges
The US is the fifth biggest producer of sweet citrus fruit (Brazil is number one). You might think Florida is the number one orange state, but California produces 92% of the total!
18. Sugar beets
Over half of the total sugar in the US comes from sugar beets – 30 million tons of which are produced in the United States, the second largest producer in the world.
19. Blueberries
The world’s undisputed champion of blueberry producers, the United States grows 200,000 tons of the beautiful blue fruit every year, 95% of which is wild.
20. Tomatoes
The US grows 10 million tons of tomatoes every year, making it the fourth-biggest producer of one of the most versatile vegetables.
Make my day! - Share your thoughts...